Tuesday, 23 August 2011

The IYDU welcomes the surrender of the forces of Colonel Muammar al-Gaddafi who have ruled Libya for over 40 years. Now that the fighting is nearing its end, all free nations must do their upmost to guide the new Libya to Freedom. This new Libya will need strong international support, so that the sacrifices which the Libyan people have made in fighting for their freedom will not be wasted. With this in mind, the IYDU board would like to extend to the National Transitional Council an offer to assist wherever necessary and help Libya make the transition into a free democratic nation. Since the outbreak of hostilities in Libya, IYDU has strongly backed the democratic forces in Libya and been a vocal supporter of the NATO mission to protect civilian life in Libya under UN Resolution 1973 ( please see our statement of 22 March 2011 http://tiny.cc/8uhwt ) as we consider that all people are born with the right to live free from tyranny and oppression.

The dramatic events of the Arab Spring have been far more lasting and wide spread that many ever thought possible. In country after country across the Middle East and North Africa ordinary people, and in particular the youth of those countries, have been forcing governments to allow greater freedoms. In some countries, such as Tunisia and Egypt, this has led to outright revolution. In others including Bahrain, Syria and Yemen civil uprisings have pushed reluctant regimes into adopting some democratic changes. Whilst not all undemocratic regimes have yet been toppled, those countries that have today seen a change of government will need the widest possible international support to become genuine democracies.

Although with Al-Gaddafi’s demise the world has lost another brutal tyrant it is important to remember that many other nations and peoples across the world including those in Belarus, Cuba, North Korea, Iran and Syria people are still denied the freedom which is their birthright. We consider that today more than ever IYDU’s defining principles of Democracy, respect for Human Rights, Free Trade and Free Markets are crucial to ensuring freedom and liberty in all countries around the world.

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IYDU will be holding its Annual Council Meeting in Sydney from Tuesday 10 January to Friday 13 January 2012 in Sydney (for more information visit http://tiny.cc/8uhwt) and we would like to make a specific invitation to people representing democratic youth movements from across Libya and the whole of North Africa and the Middle East to attend our events, learn more about our ideas and engage with other freedom-loving youth activists from around the world. Please contact Chairman Daniel Walter (daniel.walther@iydu.org) and Secretary General James Marriott (james.marriott@iydu.org) for more information about IYDU.